Floor Statements

The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Scott).

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, early yesterday morning, I returned from a whirlwind trip to the Middle East as part of a bipartisan codel, or a congressional delegation, to Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt. The trip was a direct response to Hamas's savage attack on Israel. The codel, led by my friend Senator Lindsey Graham, brought together 10 Senators from both parties to show the United States' support for Israel and to demonstrate U.S. commitment to protecting our now-threatened national interests in the region.

Our message was united: The United States stands with Israel. Iran is on notice, and it must stand down; and we need to get hostages freed and Americans out of harm's way.

We are committed to seeing Hamas defeated so that a new chapter of prosperity for Israel and its Arab neighbors can begin, of which normalized relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia would be a keystone.

Our engagements on the ground included frank and candid discussions with heads of state, Prime Minister Netanyahu, and our U.S. Embassy teams on the ground. Our day in Tel Aviv began with meeting the families of hostages being held in Gaza, including Americans who shared their painful stories. As a parent and grandparent, it is heartbreaking to see and hear the grief of these family members.

Later that day, we met with Israeli defense officials for an update on the war. We were shown video evidence of the unnerving atrocities committed by Hamas terrorists--horrific images that I will not soon forget. Our meetings made clear the absolute imperative to see Hamas defeated.

Hamas's attacks have been likened to Israel's own September 11; but Prime Minister Netanyahu made a point that is especially chilling for Americans but that every critic of Israel must hear. He pointed out that, on 9/11, our enemy was thousands of miles away. In Israel, their enemy is only a kilometer away.

For more than 15 years, Israel has had to live every day with a terrorist organization on its border whose sole mission in life is to kill Jews and to wipe Israel off the face of the Earth; and during that time, Hamas has loomed as a persistent threat to Israel, attacking, kidnapping, and killing Israelis. But the barbarism and brutality that Hamas displayed in its October 7 attacks took its evil to new heights, and now Israel knows what it has to do: It has to wipe Hamas off the face of the Earth.

For the Israelis, this is existential. Israel's cause is just, and its resolve is firm, and it should have every peace-loving nation in the world on its side. Now, how Israel goes about that mission matters, and it needs to be done in a way that minimizes civilian casualties.

The Palestinians living in Gaza are also victims of Hamas's reign of terror. Hamas has made it clear that the only value it places on the lives of Palestinians is to use them as fodder to direct attention away from its atrocities and to try and turn public sentiment, especially in Western media and the Arab street, against Israel. Case in point: Hamas's disproven claim that Israel struck a hospital, which sparked protests and riots in a number of countries.

Israelis know that there are innocent Palestinians trapped in this fight and that civilian casualties and a humanitarian crisis could drive more Palestinians toward extremism. That is why Israel is taking measures to protect innocents in Gaza, although its efforts are being undermined by Hamas, which has discouraged Palestinians from complying with Israel's evacuation order.

The United States and other peace-loving nations in the region and beyond need to give Israel space to take the fight to and eradicate Hamas, because if Hamas and its reign of terror are allowed to continue, no nation in the region or beyond will be able to live in peace and security. It really is that simple.

And one final but important point: Hamas might claim to represent Palestinians, but its violent actions do nothing--nothing--to benefit the Palestinian people. The only people who benefit from this brutal bloodshed are the ayatollahs in Iran, whose goal is to bring chaos, violence, and death to all who don't share their extreme and militant religious ideology, which, I might add, includes wiping Israel off the face of the Earth.

Look no further than Hamas if you want to see Iran's influence, as 90 percent of their military budget comes from Iran, or Hezbollah, the terrorist organization on Israel's northern border with Lebanon, which is also armed and financed by Iran. Then there are the Houthis in Yemen who, in the aftermath of October 7, fired missiles and drones headed for Israel--again, likely at the direction of Iran; the Shia militias, who are attacking American soldiers in Iraq and Syria; the killing by Russians of innocent civilians in Ukraine with drones supplied by Iran. Through its proxies, Iran is literally getting away with murder.

To the Iranian regime, we say: We are on to you.

In addition to working with regional partners to get American hostages and citizens out of Gaza, the Biden administration must clearly articulate to the Iranians that, if they do not stand down or if they green-light the escalation of this war, the United States and our allies will be forced to respond forcefully. The movement of U.S. firepower to the region should make that point very clear to Tehran.

The attacks on October 7 represent a kind of evil that the world hasn't seen in generations, and it must be confronted and contained. If it is not, we could see death and destruction on a scale akin to the horrors of the last century. History is watching.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Texas (Mr. Cruz) and the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Scott).

The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Scott).

The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Scott).

The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Scott).-

The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Scott).

The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Idaho (Mr. Crapo), the Senator from North Dakota (Mr. Hoeven), the Senator from Utah (Mr. Romney), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott), and the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Scott).

Further, if present and voting: the Senator from North Dakota (Mr. Hoeven) would have voted ``yea'' and the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott) would have voted ``yea.''

The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Scott).

The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Scott).

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, yesterday, I came down to the floor to discuss the importance of military preparedness to our national security. The most basic requirement of national security is a strong military, but it is not the only requirement. Maintaining our Nation's strength and our ability to deter threats and discourage our enemies from tangling with us also involves things like a strong economy, energy security, and border security.

And, today, I want to spend a few minutes talking about border security. Border security is an essential part of

keeping our Nation secure. Porous borders are an invitation to criminals, terrorists, and other dangerous individuals. And let us be very clear: There are dangerous individuals out there right now who would like to enter and harm our country. Porous borders are an invitation to those types of individuals.

Since the beginning of the month, four Iranians considered to be ``special interest aliens''--individuals, that is, who may pose a threat to the United States--have been apprehended at the southern border in Texas. Now, all told, thousands of special interest aliens--a number of them from Middle Eastern countries--have been apprehended at our southern border in the past 2 years.

During fiscal year 2023, 151 individuals on the Terrorist Watchlist were apprehended attempting to illegally cross our southern border-- 151. As a recent news story noted, ``that figure is more than the total of the previous six . . . years combined.''

That same story also notes:

In the first two weeks of the fiscal year, the CBP sources

told Fox News that agents had apprehended more than 30

Iranians, nearly 60 Syrians, 35 Pakistanis, more than 100

Russians, 285 Afghans and nearly 2,000 Chinese migrants at

the southern border.

``[M]ore than 30 Iranians, nearly 60 Syrians, 35 Pakistanis, more than 100 Russians, 285 Afghans and nearly 2,000 Chinese migrants at the southern border''--now, it is likely that many of those individuals are simply in search of the promise the United States offers of a better life. But it is also entirely possible that some of these individuals-- some of them from intensely hostile countries like Iran--had more malign intentions. And while Customs and Border Protection apprehended the individuals I have mentioned so far, it is not only possible, but likely, that similarly concerning individuals have entered our country undetected.

Since President Biden took office, there have been more than 1.5 million known ``got-aways'' at the southern borders. Those are individuals that Border Patrol saw but was unable to apprehend. And we can only imagine the number of unknown ``got-aways'' who have sneaked into the country. Those are people they didn't see. They have no idea.

How many of those individuals are from hostile countries or are on the Terrorist Watchlist or are members of cartels that target literally every State in the Union and are fueling the fentanyl epidemic? The truth of the matter is we just don't know, but it is a good bet that, among the ``got-aways'' were dangerous individuals who should not be entering our country.

Now, I don't need to tell anyone that the situation at our southern border right now is disastrous. All signs point to fiscal year 2023 being the third recordbreaking year of attempted illegal crossings at the southern border under the Biden administration's watch. The number of attempted illegal crossings at the southern border last month alone has been estimated to be somewhere in the range of 270,000 people, which would make it the highest monthly number ever recorded.

Customs and Border Protection is overstretched--to put it mildly--and has been for pretty much the entirety of the Biden administration. We could scarcely be sending a more welcoming signal to criminals, terrorists, and other dangerous individuals if we put out a welcome mat. Why wouldn't dangerous individuals like this take advantage of the chaos at the border to slip into our country undetected?

The Director of the FBI recently warned of copycat attacks in the United States after Hamas's deadly attack on Israel, and a September threat assessment from the Department of Homeland Security noted:

Terrorist and criminal actors may exploit the elevated flow

[of migration] and increasingly complex security environment

to enter the United States.

If we want to keep our country secure, we are going to have to get the situation at our southern border under control now. I am glad that President Biden has finally conceded that a border wall is part of the solution, but it must be backed up with the willingness to fully enforce our laws.

In the coming weeks, I expect that we are going to take up a supplemental spending bill to address support for our allies and to provide additional funding that our military may need. I hope--and will work to ensure--that that legislation also includes measures to help secure our southern border.

I have said it before, and I will say it again: If we don't get national security right, the rest is conversation. And securing our border is an indispensable part of national security.

The terrorist attack on Israel on October 7 should be all the reminder we need of the importance of being constantly on guard against those who would seek to ruin our Nation and to do us harm.

And I hope that, in the wake of this attack, President Biden and congressional Democrats will join Republicans to make both strengthening our military and securing our border a priority.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Scott).

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.